THE SOVEREIGNTY OF GOD Devotion #13 of 17

"For the kingdom is the LORD'S: and He is the governor among the nations" (Psalm 22:28); "For the LORD is a great God, and a great King above all gods" (Psalm 95:3); "One God and Father of all, Who is above all, and through all, and in you all" (Ephesians 4:6); "Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power: for Thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created" (Revelation 4:11)

THE AFFECTATION OF THE HEART

That God has direct access to the heart cannot be successfully challenged. The Word of the Lord is too clear on this matter. A few texts are here provided to strengthen your heart in this area. Do not fear to embrace them. None of them allow for the contradiction of any other statement of truth. They all allow for the interplay of the human will, as well as the exercise of divine sovereignty. PUT THINGS INTO THE KING'S HEART (Ezra 7:27) "Praise be to the LORD, the God of our fathers, who has put it into the king's heart to bring honor to the house of the LORD in Jerusalem in this way" HARDENED SIHON'S HEART (Deut. 2:30) "But Sihon king of Heshbon refused to let us pass through. For the LORD your God had made his spirit stubborn and his heart obstinate in order to give him into your hands, as he has now done." STIRRED UP HEART OF PUL, KING OF SYRIA (1 Chron. 5:26) "So the God of Israel stirred up the spirit of Pul king of Assyria (that is, Tiglath-Pileser king of Assyria), who took the Reubenites, the Gadites and the half-tribe of Manasseh into exile. He took them to Halah, Habor, Hara and the river of Gozan, where they are to this day." RAISED UP SPIRITS OF SOME TO REBUILD JERUSALEM (Ezra 1:5) "Then the family heads of Judah and Benjamin, and the priests and Levites--everyone whose heart God had moved--prepared to go up and build the house of the LORD in Jerusalem." RAISES SPIRITS OF THE MEDES (Jer. 51:11) "Sharpen the arrows, take up the shields! The LORD has stirred up the kings of the Medes, because his purpose is to destroy Babylon. The LORD will take vengeance, vengeance for his temple." STIRRED UP SPIRIT OF ZERUBBABEL (Hag. 1:14) "So the LORD stirred up the spirit of Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and the spirit of Joshua son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and the spirit of the whole remnant of the people. They came and began to work on the house of the LORD Almighty, their God" STIRS UP HADAD AGAINST SOLOMON (1 Kings 11:14) "Then the LORD raised up against Solomon an adversary, Hadad the Edomite, from the royal line of Edom." STIRS UP REZON AGAINST SOLOMON (1 Kings 11:23) "And God raised up against Solomon another adversary, Rezon son of Eliada, who had fled from his master, Hadadezer king of Zobah." STIRS UP PHILISTINES AGAINST JEHORAM (2 Chron. 21:16) "The LORD aroused against Jehoram the hostility of the Philistines and of the Arabs who lived near the Cushites." STIRS UP CYRUS' SPIRIT (2 Chron. 36:22) "In the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, in order to fulfill the word of the LORD spoken by Jeremiah, the LORD moved the heart of Cyrus king of Persia to make a proclamation throughout his realm and to put it in writing:" PROMISES TO STIR UP THE MEDES (Isa. 13:17) "See, I will stir up against them the Medes, who do not care for silver and have no delight in gold." HARDENED ISRAEL'S ENEMIES SO COULD DESTROY THEM (Josh. 11:20) "For it was the LORD himself who hardened their hearts to wage war against Israel, so that he might destroy them totally, exterminating them without mercy, as the LORD had commanded Moses." SOLD ISRAEL INTO HAND OF JABIN (Judges 4:2) "So the LORD sold them into the hands of Jabin, a king of Canaan, who reigned in Hazor. The commander of his army was Sisera, who lived in Harosheth Haggoyim." SOLD ISRAEL INTO HAND OF CHUSHAN-RISHATHAIM (Judges 3:8) "The anger of the LORD burned against Israel so that He sold them into the hands of Cushan-Rishathaim king of Abram Naharaim, to whom the Israelites were subject for eight years." STRENGTHENED EGLON AGAINST ISRAEL (Judges 3:12) "Once again the Israelites did evil in the eyes of the LORD, and because they did this evil the LORD gave Eglon king of Moab power over Israel." COMPELLED REJECTION OF COUNSEL (1 Kings 12:7-15) "They replied, "If today you will be a servant to these people and serve them and give them a favorable answer, they will always be your servants." But Rehoboam rejected the advice the elders gave him and consulted the young men who had grown up with him and were serving him. He asked them, "What is your advice? How should we answer these people who say to me, 'Lighten the yoke your father put on us'?" The young men who had grown up with him replied, "Tell these people who have said to you, 'Your father put a heavy yoke on us, but make our yoke lighter'--tell them, 'My little finger is thicker than my father's waist. My father laid on you a heavy yoke; I will make it even heavier. My father scourged you with whips; I will scourge you with scorpions.'" Three days later Jeroboam and all the people returned to Rehoboam, as the king had said, "Come back to me in three days." The king answered the people harshly. Rejecting the advice given him by the elders, he followed the advice of the young men and said, "My father made your yoke heavy; I will make it even heavier. My father scourged you with whips; I will scourge you with scorpions." So the king did not listen to the people, for this turn of events was from the LORD, to fulfill the word the LORD had spoken to Jeroboam son of Nebat through Ahijah the Shilonite." PUT A HOOK IN SENNACHERIB'S NOSE (2 Kings 19:26-28) "Their people, drained of power, are dismayed and put to shame. They are like plants in the field, like tender green shoots, like grass sprouting on the roof, scorched before it grows up. 'But I know where you stay and when you come and go and how you rage against me. Because you rage against me and your insolence has reached my ears, I will put my hook in your nose and my bit in your mouth, and I will make you return by the way you came.'" PERMITTED NO HEATHEN TO HARM PEOPLE WHEN "FEW" (1 Chron. 16:21-22) "He allowed no man to oppress them; for their sake he rebuked kings: "Do not touch my anointed ones; do my prophets no harm."" CAUSED REHOBOAM NOT TO HEARKEN TO PEOPLE (2 Chron. 10:15) "So the king did not listen to the people, for this turn of events was from God, to fulfill the word the LORD had spoken to Jeroboam son of Nebat through Ahijah the Shilonite." Acknowledging the truth in this matter is of particular benefit when confronting enemies, whether personal or otherwise. Insight in these matters can also be incorporated into our prayers. Think what a change this makes in your view of politics, national difficulties that impact upon living for Christ, and churches that are living beneath their privileges. Acceptance of these things also makes life more tolerable when things seem to be against you. God is sovereign! If you are in Christ, He will not allow men or things to work to your ultimate disadvantage! The God of all the earth will work in your behalf. There is :no restraint" with Him. He is the King of kings, and Lord of lords!

-- TOMORROW: MARTIN LUTHER ON THE LORD'S SUPPER -- -- MONDAY: PRACTICAL ASPECTS OF THIS DOCTRINE --